Powell River Farmers’ Institute, now celebrating its 100th year, wants to partner with the City of Powell River to produce bedding hay.
Judi Tyabji Wilson, a director of the organization, appeared before city council on Thursday, June 4, to say the institute has been talking about ways that farming can become more viable in the Powell River area.
“There is a very strong local food movement, there is a growing amount of food being produced and people are entering food production,” Tyabji Wilson said. “As you may have noticed, our climate has changed. We have already been re-categorized once and we are anticipating another, moving into Zone 8, which would include citrus fruits and a lot of different products that could not be grown before.
“We may find in this region we can produce more food for our animals but one of the biggest difficulties we have is we have to ship in food for our livestock.”
An advantage for farmers in Powell River is there is a slaughter licence system that means farmers are able to sell livestock products locally, which increases farm viability, but the shipping of food to feed the animals is a disadvantage.
Tyabji Wilson said there is quite a bit of land in this area that has grass on it that the city mows and mulches.
“We are not expecting to solve any of these problems tonight,” she said. “In the short term, even if we could have bedding hay would help. Before any harvested grass is fed to livestock, it has to be tested to determine if it has enough nutrients.”
Farmers are currently paying $10 to $15 a bale for bedding hay. Tyabji Wilson said there is a prospect for an agreement for the city to sell the grass it mows to farmers, which would lessen the cost for farmers and provide a revenue stream for the city. If it turns out that the farmers could get food for their animals, “that would be great.”
Tyabji Wilson requested the city create a working committee with the Farmers’ Institute to see if there is a mutually beneficial scenario for the city’s grass.
Councillor Rob Southcott asked how much land was harvestable for bedding hay and if the farmers had surveyed the city lands to figure out how much grass is available.
Tyabji Wilson said looking at just the airport and the surrounding land into Paradise Valley, there is enough to provide considerable bedding hay. She said two or three crops a year could be mown.
Councillor Jim Palm said the initiative was worth examining. He said he’d like to refer the matter to staff for further examination.
Mac Fraser, chief administrative officer, said a city staff member would make contact with the Farmers’ Institute.
Tyabji Wilson also outlined her organization’s centenary. She said the 100th anniversary of the Farmers’ Institute was quite an accomplishment. The institute was originally conceived as a dynamite distributor to assist in clearing land for farming.
At the open air market grounds in Paradise Valley on Saturday, June 20, there will be a summer solstice celebration to commemorate the centenary.
It will be a feast, starting at 7 pm and going to 10 pm. There will be a number of the regular vendors from the Powell River Farmers' Market in attendance together with a number of other vendors. It is a family-friendly event with live music.
If it goes well it has the potential to become an annual event, Tyabji Wilson said.
